This month, the Neag School of Education announces new appointments to its leadership, welcomes three new faculty members, and also announces staff updates in the Dean’s Office.

More than 60 Neag School alums, students, faculty, and administrators, along with education professionals from across Connecticut, gathered last month for an evening of networking, followed by a panel discussion at the Darien Community Association in Darien, Conn. This year’s forum, held for the first time in Fairfield County, was hosted by Neag School Dean’s Board of Advocates members James Degnan ’87 (CLAS) and Elizabeth Degnan ’87 (CLAS).

Dwight Sharpe, after receiving the 2018 Rogers Educational Innovation Fund, a $5,000 award that supports innovative projects carried out by Connecticut teachers at the elementary or middle-school level, has begun implementing his vision. Sharpe’s project, entitled “Accessing and Engaging in Mathematics Through Robotics and Computer Programming,” seeks “to explore and determine how robotics and computer programming can be embedded into middle school instruction to improve student engagement and achievement.” It was selected from among more than 40 submissions.

Many school districts across Connecticut hold Neag School of Education teacher education graduates in the highest regard for potential employment.Throughout the Neag School’s partner school districts, juniors and seniors in the Integrated Bachelor’s/Master’s (IB/M) program get firsthand student teaching experience in urban and suburban classroom settings; during their fifth year in the program, students receive further preparation through various professional development offerings and on-site internships.

"As a transfer student, I would advise fellow transfer students to immerse themselves in Husky life, but don't get too distracted from academics," says Kaitlyn Ferrara.